5 tips to keep your pet's Halloween scare-free

Tomorrow evening is Halloween. While parents work hard to make sure it a safe holiday for their children, some families forget just how scary it can be for the family pet.

The continuous ringing of the doorbell can really drive some dogs crazy. Cats who love to play with string and yarn cannot resist those fake cotton spider webs. To make sure that all your family members are safe and enjoying the evening here are a few tips to think about.

If you want to dress your pet up for the holiday, practice with them. Put the costume on in advance; get them used to wearing it. Make sure there are not parts of the costume that could be easily chewed off and swallowed.

This past weekend my dog, Scout, was in a Halloween parade at an agility trial. Scout was a salt shaker on a picnic table. While my friend’s dog Kiwi was the pepper. Yes, they were very cute, and even won the food category for the contest, but it required a lot of control on the part of the dogs. They had to sit in a wagon, covered with a poster board that looked like a picnic table with their heads coming out of holes, with a metal lid strapped on. It took a little bit of practice.

Supervise your pet around jack-o'-lanterns. Pumpkin is very popular right now in the dog food market. There are many treats that made with it. Your dog may try to eat the pumpkin, and get sick just by consuming so much of it at one time. There's also a chance of getting burned by the candle. Make sure that jack-o'-lanterns are placed in a safe place.

Supervise your pets around other decorations as well. Most Halloween decorations are made from the same kind of rubbery material as that in dog toys. Rubber eyeballs can cause choking.

Imitation spiderwebs can be irresistible for a cat. But your cat could become entangled in it and choke.

Also if your children plan on carrying a glow stick to light their path, make sure they are kept out of reach of your dog when not being carried. Glow sticks are sticks and dogs love to chew them. While most of them are filled with liquid that is not poisonous, chewing on one could make your pet sick.

Make sure that your pets are wearing their collars and identification tags. It is very easy for a dog or cat to slip out the door while you are passing out candy to trick-or-treaters. Sometimes it is just best on Halloween night to keep your pet in their crate or in a quiet room with a new bone where they can relax. You don’t want your children to remember Halloween as the night they lost their best friend.

Lastly, make sure that treat baskets are placed where you pet can not get into them. Chocolate is not a food that dogs and cats should eat. Xylitol, a sweetener used in sugar-free gums and candy can also be harmful to pets. If you know that your pet has eaten something that may be hazardous to them, you can contact the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center hotline at 888-426-4435.

Keep Halloween Safe for everyone including your furry friends.

Shirley Miyahara is a certified pet dog trainer who resides in Langhorne. She works part-time at Canine Academy in Penndel. She is an American Kennel Club canine good citizen evaluator and she writes on Wednesdays. Shirley can be reached at k9shirley@yahoo.com.

John Anastasi can be reached at 215-269-6069 or at janastasi@phillyBurbs.com. Follow John on Twitter at twitter.com/BurbsAndBeyond

Never miss a story

Choose the plan that's right for you.
Digital access or digital and print delivery.